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Collection online

hydria

Object type

Museum number

1885,1213.18

Description

Pottery: red-figured hydria (water-jar). Woman reading, and three attendants. The reader, seated in a chair to right, bends forward over a scroll, of which a portion unrolled shows dots representing sixteen lines of writing arranged στοιχηδόν (stoichedon – arranged vertically as well as horizontally, in a grid-like fasion). The women on either side of her stand to front looking inwards, and wear Doric chiton with apoptygma, tied; the one on left has left resting on hip, and holds up in right an object like a large plectrum or purse (?): she has a purple fillet wound thrice round her looped-up hair. The other holds up on her right a square box of wicker. The seated figure and the one on the extreme right wear sleeved chitoi and himation. The one on extreme right wears a radiate dotted sphendone, and hold up in right a flower: all the three on right wear a dotted fillet with rays, wound twice around the hair. Over the seated figure hangs an embroidered cap with stringsGood period, but drawing a little careless. Purple rays, fillet and strings of cap. Eye in developed profile.